Pneumonia - Prevention

Pneumonia often develops as a complication following an attack of influenza. To protect against this possibility, a person should be vaccinated against influenza each year. This advice is especially important for elderly people and people who live in crowded conditions, such as nursing homes or army camps.

A vaccine has been developed against Streptococcus pneumoniae. It works very well and is recommended for patients with chronic illnesses.

One consequence of the AIDS epidemic was the development of a new treatment for PCP. Patients may be put on a regular schedule of the drug trimethoprim sulfate and/or inhaled pentamidine. This treatment has dramatically reduced the rate of deaths from PCP among people with AIDS.